Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1887-02-26
A MISSOURIAN'S VIEW OF THE ''GOL
DEN WEST" AND THE ROUTE HE
TOOK TO REACH 1T. WITH A
FEW SKETCHES OF WHAT He
SAW AND FELT WHILE EN-
JOYING A TWO MONTHS
STAY WITH FRIENDS
ON THE SHORES OF
THE PACIFIC.

EDITOR INTELLIGENCER:- My last
letter left me safe and sound at my
brothers delightful home in San Jose.
| had now been in tine Golden State
of California about one month.
had seen but a small portion of this
great state. / had crossed her mighty
Sierra Nevadas on my way out from
the east. | had sailed across her beau
tiful bay, and had traversed some of
her charming valleys. l had enjoyed
the roar of her grand old Pacific, and
bathed in her surf at Santa Cruz. Had
stood beneath her towering trees of the
Coast Mountains, and had enjoyed her
rich fruits and flowers. Had enjoyed
the society and hospitality of her good
people; and nov, while quietly resting
from my trip to the geysers, and over
the mountains under the shelter of my
brothers home, and in the midst of his
happy family, | began to make ready
for the return trip. Although 1 had
traversed Santa Clara Valley its whole
| length, from north to south, and from
the Blue Mountains on the west, to the
golden Contra Costas or the east, and
had gone up and down and about
the county seat viewing the orchards
and vineyar and gardens and fields,
and beautiful grounds and residences
of her happy people, aud had drank
from her Alumn and her Saratoga
Springs, and OF her life giving Azule !;
still there was much yet to be seen and
learned of her thriving people, and
their rich, prosperous possessions.
Santa Clara county, in my opinion,
is the brightest and best portion of the
state. 1t is less exposed to climatic
changes, the temperature being more
even. The daily breezes from the bay
that come as regular as the sunshine,
prevents extreme heat and renders the
climate very healthy, and San Jose is
the best town in all this good valley.
1t is true that while we were there, the
dust detracted much from the beauty
and comfort of the place. Still with this
dust, and the parched appearance of
the trees and grounds incident upon
the summer season, it was charm
ing TO us and made us desire to linger
as long as circumstances would permit.
The mornings and evenings in San Jose
were very charming. The sun, rising
above the Contra Costa mountains in
the morning, beamed with golden
splendOr on the eastern slope of the
coast mountains and at the same time
casting somber, leaden veil over the
western sides of the Contra Costas
AT midday he would flood the
whole valley and mountain and all
with his meridian light, then all shade
and shadow was gone. At evening the
scenes changed, and while the Contra
Costas were glowing with the golden
days OF the setting sun, the Coast
Mountains were clad in deep blue
robes, and thus the days would go out
on the peaceful valley, and the moon
with her milder light would continue
the picture of splendor. AT times
the two ranges of mountains that skirt
the eastern and western boundaries of
this charming valley, the one clad in
gray and the other i'll blue, seemed TO
draw nigh to and almost embrace each
other. typitying the happy union and
communion that now exists between
the shattered remains of the two con-
tending armies of brothers and friends
that so recently clothed our land in
mourning by their strife. Beautiful
San Jose! l shall long remember with
unceasing delight the happy hours
spent within thy precincts with kind
f lends and kindred dear. There was
nothing occurred during my whole
Every day was a bright and happy
one. The Sabbaths were in the wor.
ship of God, and to us truly were the
golden links that bound the weeks
together. But separations must be
had and goodbye said by all of us
poor mortals. So with u.s. After
spendlngnearly twomonthsin seeming
ty short time, we turned our faces east
ward and bade goodbye TO the scenes
and friends around us, promising our
selves that if ever the opportunity pre-
sented itself we would make this trip
again and enjoy these scenes and the
society of these dear friends again. On
August Nth, with hearts full of love
and eyes full of tears, we boarded the
Central Pacific railroad at o'clock D.
m, and commenced our homeWard
journey via Niles and The eastern shore
of the bay, by Sacramento City, and
across the Sierra Nevadas, and across
the Humboldt valley and on to Ogden
by the same route we had gone. There
was little that we saw or noted that
had escaped our notice as we went out
except that it be rounding the horn"
which we did by moonlight. There
were several of us who had heard of,
but had not seen this wonderful por-
ton OF the Central Pacific road, and
we staid up to see it. We reached this
fearful gorge about Il o'clock at night,
aud by moonlight we sat upon the
steps of the coach and gaZed down the
mountain gorge twenty-five hundred
feet. The railroad track partially
passes over this gorge, and could not
help feeling of relief when we had
safely passed oyer it. But we passed
over this, as we had passed, and did
atlerWard pass over every foot of the
railroad from home 10 the Pacific with
Ont q jar or single accident We
4 REACHED Ogden, the eastern terminus
4 c.. the Central Pacific, about nine
O'clock 9yfi a.s second day aout from
Oakland.b nereqse, ciass, ciaass,Gsitceat new
portion of our Journey home, dl,t he'd .is.s.
gone out from Denver to Ogqen by fiie
Denver IL Rio Gran,le railroad now
we were returning on the Union Pa
citic, over Che Wahsatch and Rocky
mountains and across the high table
lands that lie between these mountain
ranges to Cheyenne, and thence down
by Denver and Oh to Kansas CITY by
the Kansas Pacific railroad. The
scenery of the route between Ogden
and Cheyenne was almost, if not quite,
a. grand and beautiful as any we had
beheid. The only thing that | regret
ed was tina: we had to pass through il
and by it so rapidly that we had only a
glimpse and the beauty and grandeur
were gone. The whole thing was like
Il swiftly passing panorama, yet, not
"lthstandlng the mOmentary view we
had OF most Of the scenery we passed
through, still much Of it was so photo
graphed upon our memory that we can
call 1t up to mind with much greater
distlnctness than | can picture it to
your readers. l can never forget the
scene spread out before us on the morn
ing OF August Goth as we reached
sherman the highest point on
the Union Pacific railroad being s 200
feet above the sea. The sky was clear,
not a cloud to be seen, and the gentle
breeze from the north, coming to us
across and over the snow capped noun
tains rendered the sunshine delightful.
The air was as sweet as the breath of